Wireless communication system, wireless communication device, wireless communication method and program

ABSTRACT

A first communication unit performs a non-contact communication with an external device and receives setting data from the external device. A second communication unit performs a wireless communication with the external device. A control unit establishes the wireless communication between the second communication unit and the external device by using the setting data. A data processing unit stores the setting data in a storage unit before the wireless communication is released. A communication releasing unit releases the wireless communication. The control unit uses the setting data stored in the storage unit at a time of re-performing a wireless communication between the second communication unit and the external device. The communication releasing unit releases the wireless communication when the power is not being supplied via a power input unit to which power is input from outside.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. §120 from U.S. Ser. No. 12/442,530, filed Mar. 24, 2009,the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. U.S.Ser. No. 12/442,530 is based on PCT Application No. PCT/JP2008/057151,filed Apr. 11, 2008, and claims the benefit of priority from priorJapanese Patent Application No. 2007-111016, filed Apr. 19, 2007.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a wireless communication system, awireless communication device, a wireless communication method and aprogram.

BACKGROUND ART

Recently, a non-contact communication method has been proposed that usesa terminal that is equipped with a non-contact integrated circuit (IC)chip and a reader/writer that performs reading and writing of data fromand to the non-contact IC chip equipped in the terminal. According tosuch non-contact communication method, by bringing the terminal that isequipped with the non-contact IC chip and the reader/writer intoproximity of each other, data communication between the devices isenabled.

Further, wireless communication technologies such as wireless local areanetwork (LAN), Bluetooth (registered trademark), and the like have alsobecome widespread. According to such wireless communicationtechnologies, information can be transmitted and received among aplurality of wireless communication devices without connecting theplurality of communication devices by wire.

On the other hand, to establish a wireless connection between each ofthe plurality of wireless communication devices, it is needed to inputsetting data such as address of a wireless network, address informationof the wireless communication device of a communication counterpart, andthe like to each of the wireless communication devices. It is cumbersomefor a user to manually perform input of setting data as such, and thus,a technology of simplifying a setting data input operation is beingproposed.

For example, in Patent Document 1, there is disclosed an informationprocessing method of sharing setting data necessary for a wirelessconnection between a mobile telephone and a personal computer (PC) byusing non-contact communication between the mobile telephone and thepersonal computer, and establishing the wireless connection between themobile telephone and the personal computer based on the setting datashared by the non-contact communication.

-   [Patent Document 1] JP-A-2002-204239

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, with the conventional information processing method, when auser wishes for a wireless reconnection between the wirelesscommunication devices after the wireless connection between the wirelesscommunication devices is released due to, for example, timeout, the userneeded to perform non-contact communication between the respectivewireless communication devices by performing again an into-proximityoperation of bringing respective wireless communication devices intoproximity of each other, and to share the setting data between therespective wireless communication devices. That is, with theconventional information processing method, a user is forced to performthe into-proximity operation every time the wireless reconnection is tobe established between the respective wireless communication devices,and thus, there is a problem that the convenience of the user is poor.

Thus, the present invention has been achieved in view of theabove-described problem, and the object of the present invention is toprovide a wireless communication system, a wireless communicationdevice, a wireless communication method and a program that are new andimproved, and capable of establishing with ease a wireless reconnectionbetween the wireless communication devices.

Means for Solving the Problems

To solve the above-described problem, according to an aspect of thepresent invention, a wireless communication system including a firstwireless communication device and a second wireless communication deviceis provided. More particularly, the first wireless communication deviceincludes a non-contact communication section that transmits setting datanecessary for a wireless connection between the first wirelesscommunication device and the second wireless communication device to thesecond wireless communication device by a non-contact communicationmethod. Further, the second wireless communication device includes afirst communication section that receives the setting data transmittedfrom the first wireless communication device by the non-contactcommunication method, a second communication section that is capable ofestablishing a wireless connection with the first wireless communicationdevice, a control section that establishes the wireless connectionbetween the second communication section and the first wirelesscommunication device by using the setting data received by the firstcommunication section, and a data processing section that stores thesetting data in a storage medium before the wireless connection isreleased, wherein the control section uses the setting data stored inthe storage medium at the time of establishing a wireless reconnectionbetween the second communication section and the first wirelesscommunication device.

Further, to solve the above-described problem, according to anotheraspect of the present invention, there is provided a wirelesscommunication device including a first communication section thatperforms non-contact communication with another wireless communicationdevice and that receives predetermined setting data from the otherwireless communication device, a second communication section that iscapable of establishing a wireless connection with the other wirelesscommunication device, a control section that establishes the wirelessconnection between the second communication section and the otherwireless communication device by using the setting data, necessary forthe wireless connection, received by the first communication section,and a data processing section that stores the setting data in a storagemedium before the wireless connection is released, wherein the controlsection uses the setting data stored in the storage medium at the timeof establishing a wireless reconnection between the second communicationsection and the other wireless communication device.

With such a configuration, the data processing section stores in thestorage medium the setting data necessary for the wireless connectionbetween the wireless communication device and the other wirelesscommunication device, and when the need arises for a reconnection afterthe wireless connection between the wireless communication device andthe other wireless communication device is released, the control sectionreconnects the wireless connection between the wireless communicationdevice and the other wireless communication device by using the settingdata stored in the storage medium. Accordingly, according to thewireless communication device, the wireless communication device and theother wireless communication device can be automatically reconnectedwithout the user of the wireless communication device being forced ofoperations such as the input operation of setting data and theinto-proximity operation of the wireless communication device to theother wireless communication device.

The wireless communication device and the other wireless communicationdevice may have group information enabling the identification of a groupto which each belongs, and the data processing section may make storageperiod for the setting data in the storage medium variable depending onwhether the group information of the wireless communication device andthe group information of the other wireless communication devicecorrespond to each other or not. Here, the storage period for thesetting data in the storage medium corresponds to a period during whichthe wireless reconnection can be established between the wirelesscommunication device and the other wireless communication device byusing the setting data. Accordingly, with such a configuration, theperiod during which the wireless reconnection can be established betweenthe wireless communication device and the other wireless communicationdevice by using the setting data can be made variable depending on thewhether group information of the wireless communication device and thegroup information of the other wireless communication device correspondto each other or not.

The data processing section may make the storage period for the settingdata in the storage medium longer for a case where the group informationof the wireless communication device and the group information of theother wireless communication device correspond to each other than for acase where the group information of the wireless communication deviceand the group information of the other communication device differ fromeach other. With such a configuration, when the group information of thewireless communication device and the group information of the otherwireless communication device correspond to each other than, the periodduring which the wireless reconnection can be established between thewireless communication device and the other wireless communicationdevice by using the setting data can be made longer than when the groupinformation of the wireless communication device and the groupinformation of the other communication device differ from each other.

Further, the wireless communication device further includes a powerinput section to which power is input from outside, and a communicationreleasing section that releases the wireless connection between thesecond communication section and the other wireless communicationdevice, wherein the communication releasing section does not necessarilyhave to release the wireless connection while power is being suppliedvia the power input section. With such a configuration, thecommunication releasing section releases the wireless connection fromthe viewpoint of reducing the power consumed during the wirelessconnection between the second communication section and the otherwireless communication device and to effectively use the battery.Accordingly, while power is input from outside via the power inputsection, there is little need to give thought to effective utilizationof battery, and thus, the communication releasing section does notrelease the wireless connection and the process for the wirelessreconnection can be eliminated.

Further, to solve the above-described problem, according to anotheraspect of the present invention, there is provided a program making acomputer function as a wireless communication device including a firstcommunication section that performs non-contact communication withanother wireless communication device and that receives predeterminedsetting data from the other wireless communication device, a secondcommunication section that is capable of establishing a wirelessconnection with the other wireless communication device, a controlsection that establishes the wireless connection between the secondcommunication section and the other wireless communication device byusing the setting data, necessary for the wireless connection, receivedby the first communication section, and a data processing section thatstores the setting data in a storage medium before the wirelessconnection is released, wherein the control section uses the settingdata stored in the storage medium at the time of establishing a wirelessreconnection between the second communication section and the otherwireless communication device.

Such a program can, for example, make a computer hardware resource thatincludes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM or the like execute the functions of thecontrol section, the data processing section and the like as describedabove. That is, it is possible to make a computer that uses the programto function as the above-described wireless communication device.

Further, to solve the above-described problem, according to anotheraspect of the present invention, there is provided a wirelesscommunication method including the steps of performing non-contactcommunication with another wireless communication device and receivingpredetermined setting data from the other wireless communication device,establishing a wireless connection with the other wireless communicationdevice by using the setting data, storing the setting data in a storagemedium before the wireless connection is released, releasing thewireless connection, and establishing a wireless reconnection with theother wireless communication device by using the setting data stored inthe storage medium.

Effect of the Invention

As explained above, according to the wireless communication system, awireless communication device, a wireless communication method and aprogram according to the present invention, it is possible to establishwith ease a wireless reconnection between wireless communicationdevices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the overallconfiguration of a wireless communication system according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the overallconfiguration of a wireless communication system according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a function block diagram showing basic configurations of apersonal computer and a portable device according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing a flow of a wireless communicationmethod to be executed by a wireless communication system according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a portabledevice according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a function block diagram showing configurations of a personalcomputer and the portable device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a concrete example of settingdata.

FIG. 7A is an explanatory diagram showing a flow of a wirelesscommunication method to be executed by the portable device according tothe present embodiment.

FIG. 7B is an explanatory diagram showing a flow of a wirelesscommunication method to be executed by the portable device according tothe present embodiment.

FIG. 7C is an explanatory diagram showing a flow of a wirelesscommunication method to be executed by the portable device according tothe present embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing a flow of a wireless communication methodto be executed by the portable device according to the presentembodiment.

FIG. 9 is a function block diagram showing configurations of a personalcomputer and a portable device according to a second embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of data to bestored in a storage section.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a storage periodfor setting data in the storage section.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart showing a flow of a wireless communicationmethod to be executed by a portable device according to the presentembodiment.

EXPLANATION OF NUMERALS

-   12 wireless base station-   20 portable device-   116, 216 non-contact communication section-   120, 220 wireless communication section-   124, 224 simple setting processing section-   132, 232 timeout control section-   140, 240 application-   150, 160, 250, 260 storage section

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereunder, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the appended drawings.Incidentally, in the present specification and drawings, as forconfiguration elements having substantially the same functionalconfiguration, the same numeral is used and the repeated explanationwill be omitted.

Further, the best mode for carrying out the invention will be explainedin the order shown below.

(1) Overview of a wireless communication system according to the presentembodiment

-   -   (1-1) Basic configuration of a wireless communication device        according to the present embodiment    -   (1-2) Operation of the wireless communication system according        to the present embodiment

(2) Explanation of a wireless communication device according to a firstembodiment of the present invention

-   -   (2-1) Purpose of the present embodiment    -   (2-2) Hardware configuration of the wireless communication        device according to the present embodiment    -   (2-3) Functional configuration of the wireless communication        device according to the present embodiment    -   (2-4) Wireless communication method to be executed by the        wireless communication device according to the present        embodiment

(3) Explanation of a wireless communication device according to a secondembodiment of the present invention

-   -   (3-1) Purpose of the present embodiment    -   (3-2) Functional configuration of the wireless communication        device according to the present embodiment    -   (3-3) Wireless communication method to be executed by the        wireless communication device according to the present        embodiment

(4) Conclusion

(1) OVERVIEW OF A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM ACCORDING TO THE PRESENTEMBODIMENT

First, an overview of a wireless communication system 1 according to thepresent embodiment will be explained with reference to FIG. 1. Accordingto the wireless communication system 1, a wireless connection can beestablished with ease among a plurality of wireless communicationdevices.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the overallconfiguration of the wireless communication system 1 according to thepresent embodiment. The wireless communication system 1 includes apersonal computer (PC) 10, a wireless base station 12 and a portabledevice 20.

The personal computer 10 and the portable device 20 are wirelesscommunication devices that implement a non-contact communicationfunction and a wireless communication function. As the wirelesscommunication function, there are a wireless local area network (LAN),Bluetooth (registered trademark), and the like. Further, FIG. 1A shows asituation where the personal computer 10 is connected with the basestation 12 of the wireless LAN.

At this time, when the portable device 20 is brought into the proximityof the personal computer 10, the portable device 20 and the personalcomputer 10 perform a non-contact communication. Then, based on thenon-contact communication, the portable device 20 obtains from thepersonal computer 10 setting data necessary for a wireless connectionwith the personal computer 10.

Then, as shown in FIG. 1B, based on the setting data obtained from thepersonal computer 10, the portable device 20 can realize the wirelessconnection with the personal computer 10 via the base station 12. Thatis, in the wireless communication system 1, it becomes possible to savethe user of the portable device 20 the trouble of manually inputtingsetting data to the portable device 20.

Note that the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20 are shownin FIG. 1 merely as examples of the wireless communication device, andthe wireless communication device may be an information processingdevice such as a home video processing device (a DVD recorder, a videocassette recorder, or the like), a mobile telephone, a PersonalHandyphone System (PHS), a portable music playback device, a portableimage processing device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a home gamedevice, a portable game device, a home appliance, or the like.

Further, in FIG. 1, a case is shown where the wireless connection isestablished between the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20via the base station 12. However, the present embodiment is not limitedto such an example, and the personal computer 10 and the portable device20 can be directly connected in an ad hoc manner, for example.

Further, in the above, a case has been explained where the portabledevice 20 is brought into the proximity of the personal computer 10, andthe portable device 20 obtains the setting data. However, by bringingthe portable device 20 into the proximity of the personal computer 10,the personal computer 10 may also obtain the setting data and use thesame for the wireless connection with the portable device 20.

(1-1) Basic Configuration of a Wireless Communication Device Accordingto the Present Embodiment

Next, the basic configurations of the personal computer 10 and theportable device 20 as examples of the wireless communication deviceaccording to the present embodiment will be explained with reference toFIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a function block diagram showing the basic configurations ofthe personal computer 10 and the portable device 20 according to thepresent embodiment. The personal computer 10 includes a non-contactcommunication section 116, a wireless communication section 120, asimple setting processing section 124, a timeout control section 132 andan application 140. Further, the portable device 20 includes anon-contact communication section 216, a wireless communication section220, a simple setting processing section 224, a timeout control section232 and an application 240.

The non-contact communication section 116 is a non-contact communicationinterface with the portable device 20, and may, in some cases, have afunction of a reader/writer that communicates with the portable device20 the setting data and also unique data indicating the communicationfunction of the personal computer 10 or of the portable device 20. Forexample, the non-contact communication section 116 can transmit radiowaves that reach a short distance of approximately 10 cm, drive thenon-contact communication section 216 of the portable device 20 that iswithin the radio transmission footprint, and communicate with thenon-contact communication section 216 of the portable device 20. Suchnon-contact communication section 116 may actually include an antennaand a control section that controls communication that uses the antenna.

The wireless communication section 120 is an interface for a wirelesscommunication with the portable device 20. That is, the wirelesscommunication section 120 can, after a wireless connection with thewireless communication section 220 of the portable device 20 isestablished based on the operation of the simple setting processingsection 124, transmit and receive arbitrary data to and from theportable device 20. Such wireless communication section 120 may becompatible with a wireless LAN or may be compatible with Bluetooth(registered trademark). Further, the wireless communication section 120may include an antenna, an IC chip, and software that controls the ICchip to transmit and receive arbitrary data to and from the antenna.

The simple setting processing section 124 performs processing forestablishing a wireless connection between the wireless communicationsection 120 of the personal computer 10 and the wireless communicationsection 220 of the portable device 20. For example, in a case where thewireless communication section 120 is connected to a base station forthe wireless communication, the non-contact communication section 116 ismade to transmit setting data including the ID of the base station, anetwork ID, or the like. Or, a wireless connection between the wirelesscommunication section 120 and the wireless communication section 220 ofthe portable device 20 is established based on the setting data receivedvia the non-contact communication section 116.

The timeout control section 132 has a function of a communicationreleasing section that releases the wireless connection between thewireless communication section 120 and the wireless communicationsection 220 of the portable device 20. Since power is necessary tomaintain the wireless connection between the personal computer 10 andthe portable device 20, if the wireless connection is maintained betweenthe personal computer 10 and the portable device 20 even when thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 are not actuallyperforming data communication, it may result in an excessive powerconsumption. Thus, when data communication is not actually beingperformed between the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20for a predetermined time period of, for example, one hour, thirtyminutes, or the like, the timeout control section 132 releases thewireless connection between the personal computer 10 and the portabledevice 20, and can contribute to the reduction of power consumption.

The application 140 is software for achieving a specific purpose. Forexample, the application 140 may be a data editing application, a datacommunication application, or a program execution application.

The non-contact communication section 216 is a non-contact communicationinterface with the personal computer 10, and has a function of a firstcommunication section that communicates with the personal computer 10the setting data and also unique data indicating the communicationfunction of the personal computer 10 or the portable device 20. Forexample, the non-contact communication section 216 can be driven by theradio waves transmitted from the non-contact communication section 116of the personal computer 10, and can communicate with the non-contactcommunication section 116 of the personal computer 10. Such non-contactcommunication section 216 may actually include an antenna, an IC chip,and software that controls the IC chip to transmit and receive arbitrarydata to and from the antenna.

The wireless communication section 220 is an interface for a wirelesscommunication with the personal computer 10, and has a function of asecond communication section. That is, the wireless communicationsection 220 can, after a wireless connection with the wirelesscommunication section 120 of the personal computer 10 is establishedbased on the operation of the simple setting processing section 224,transmit and receive arbitrary data to and from the personal computer10. Such wireless communication section 220 may be compatible with awireless LAN or may be compatible with Bluetooth (registered trademark).Further, the wireless communication section 220 may include an antenna,an IC chip, and software that controls the IC chip to transmit andreceive arbitrary data to and from the antenna.

The simple setting processing section 224 performs processing forestablishing a wireless connection between the wireless communicationsection 120 of the personal computer 10 and the wireless communicationsection 220 of the portable device 20. For example, in a case where thewireless communication section 120 of the personal computer 10 isconnected to a base station for the wireless communication, setting dataincluding the ID of the base station, a network ID or the like isreceived via the non-contact communication section 216, and a wirelessconnection between the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 and the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 is established based on the setting data.

The timeout control section 232 has a function of a communicationreleasing section that releases the wireless connection between thewireless communication section 120 of the personal computer 10 and thewireless communication section 220 of the portable device 20. Asdescribed above, since power is necessary to maintain the wirelessconnection between the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20,if the wireless connection is maintained between the personal computer10 and the portable device 20 even when the personal computer 10 and theportable device 20 are not actually performing data communication, itmay result in an excessive power consumption. Thus, the timeout controlsection 232 may, for example count the time that elapsed after theactual data communication is performed between the personal computer 10and the portable device 20, and, when the count reaches a predeterminedvalue, may release the wireless connection between the personal computer10 and the portable device 20. As a result, the timeout control section232 can contribute to the reduction of power consumption.

The application 240 is software for achieving a specific purpose. Forexample, the application 240 may be a data editing application, a datacommunication application, or a program execution application. Datacommunication between the application 240 and the application 140 of thepersonal computer 10 is performed via, for example, the wirelesscommunication section 120 and the wireless communication section 220.

(1-2) Operation of the Wireless Communication System According to thePresent Embodiment

Next, a flow until a wireless connection is established in the wirelesscommunication system 1 according to the present embodiment between thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 will be explained withreference to FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing a flow of a wireless communicationmethod to be executed by the wireless communication system 1 accordingto the present embodiment. First, when the wireless communicationsection 120 of the personal computer 10 establishes a wirelessconnection with the base station 12 (S304), setting data is output tothe non-contact communication section 116 via the simple settingprocessing section 124 (S308). Next, when the portable device 20 isbrought into the proximity of the personal computer 10 (S312), thenon-contact communication section 116 of the personal computer 10transmits the setting data to the non-contact communication section 216of the portable device 20 (S316).

Next, the simple setting processing section 224 outputs the setting datareceived by the non-contact communication section 216 of the portabledevice 20 to the wireless communication section 220 (S320), and performsa wireless connection processing, using the setting data, between thewireless communication section 220 of the portable device 20 and thewireless communication section 120 of the personal computer 10 (S324).Note that the wireless connection processing includes, for example,mutual authentication processing between the portable device 20 and thepersonal computer 10.

Next, when the wireless connection is established between the personalcomputer 10 and the portable device 20, arbitrary data is transmittedand received between the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 and the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 (S328, S332).

As such, the wireless communication system 1 is effective in that thewireless connection between the personal computer 10 and the portabledevice 20 can be realized without the user of the personal computer 10or the portable device 20 being forced to perform an input operation ofsetting data.

(2) EXPLANATION OF A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION DEVICE ACCORDING TO THEPRESENT EMBODIMENT

Next, the purposes, particular configurations and the like of thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 as examples of thewireless communication device according to the present embodiment willbe explained in detail.

(2-1) Purpose of the Present Embodiment

As described above, the user of the portable device 20 can establish awireless connection between the portable device 20 and a counterpartcommunication device by bringing the portable device 20 and thecounterpart communication device into proximity of each other. That is,the user of the portable device 20 can realize the wireless connectionbetween the portable device 20 and the counterpart communication devicewithout performing an input operation of setting data.

However, the wireless connection between the portable device 20 and thecounterpart communication device may be released due to various reasons.For example, the timeout control section 232 releases the wirelessconnection when the portable device 20 and the counterpart communicationdevice do not perform actual communication for a predetermined time. Or,the user of the portable device 20 may release the wireless connectionintentionally. When the need arises to establish a wireless reconnectionafter the wireless connection is released in such a manner, the user ofthe portable device 20 needs to bring again the portable device 20 intothe proximity of the counterpart communication device (into-proximityoperation). When such into-proximity operation is forced on the user forevery wireless reconnection, there is a problem that it becomescumbersome for the user.

Accordingly, the portable device 20 according to a first embodiment ofthe present invention has come to be created by focusing on thecircumstance as described above. According to the portable device 20according to the present embodiment, a wireless reconnection between theportable device 20 and the counterpart communication device can beestablished with ease. Hereunder, the configuration and operation ofsuch portable device 20 will be explained in detail.

(2-2) Hardware Configuration of the Wireless Communication DeviceAccording to the Present Embodiment

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of theportable device 20 according to the present embodiment. The portabledevice 20 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 201, a read onlymemory (ROM) 202, a random access memory (RAM) 203, a host bus 204, abridge 205, an external bus 206, an interface 207, an input device 208,an output device 210, a storage device (HDD) 211, a drive 212 and acommunication device 215.

The CPU 201 functions as a computation processing device and a controldevice, and controls the overall operation of the portable device 20according to various programs. Further, the CPU 201 may be amicroprocessor. The ROM 202 stores programs, computation parameters andthe like to be used by the CPU 201. The RAM 203 temporarily storesprograms to be used by the CPU 201 in its execution, parameters thatchange as appropriate in the execution of the programs, and the like.These are interconnected by the host bus 204 configured by a CPU bus orthe like.

The host bus 204 is connected to the external bus 206, such as aperipheral component interconnect/interface (PCI) bus or the like, viathe bridge 205. Note that it is not absolutely necessary to configurethe host bus 204, the bridge 205 and the external bus 206 separately,and their functions may be implemented in a single bus.

The input device 208 is configured by input means for the user to inputinformation, such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, a button, amicrophone, a switch, a lever, or the like, for example, an inputcontrol circuit that creates an input signal based on the input by theuser and outputs the signal to the CPU 201, and the like. The user ofthe portable device 20 can input various data to the portable device 20and instruct processing operations to the portable device 20 byoperating the input device 208.

The output device 210 is configured by a display device such as acathode ray tube (CRT) display device, a liquid crystal display (LCD)device, a lamp, or the like, and an audio output device such as aspeaker, a headphone, or the like. The output device 210 outputsplayed-back content, for example. Specifically, the display devicedisplays as text and images various information such as played-backvideo data and the like. On the other hand, the audio output deviceconverts the played-back audio data and the like into sound and outputsthe same.

The storage device 211 is a device for storing data that is configuredas an example of the storage section of the portable device 20 accordingto the present embodiment, and can include a storage medium, a recordingdevice storing data in the storage medium, a readout device reading outdata from the storage medium, a deletion device deleting data stored inthe storage medium, and the like. The storage device 211 is configuredby a hard disk drive (HDD), for example. The storage device 211 drives ahard disk and stores programs to be executed by the CPU 201 and variousdata. Further, the setting data, the unique data and the like are storedin the storage device 211.

The drive 212 is a reader/writer for a storage medium, and is built intothe portable device 20 or is mounted externally on the portable device20. The drive 212 reads out information stored in an attached removablestorage medium 24 such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magnetooptical disk, a semiconductor memory, or the like, and outputs the sameto the RAM 203.

The communication device 215 is a communication interface that isconfigured by a communication device or the like for connecting to acommunication network 12, for example. Further, the communication device215 may be a wireless local area network (LAN) compatible communicationdevice, a wireless USB compatible communication device, a wiredcommunication device that performs communication by wire, a non-contactcommunication compatible device, or a combination of a plurality of theabove-described communication devices. The communication device 215transmits and receives arbitrary data to and from the base station 12 orother wireless communication devices. Note that the hardwareconfiguration of the personal computer 10 can be configured to besubstantially the same as for the portable device 20, and theexplanation will be omitted.

(2-3) Functional Configuration of the Wireless Communication DeviceAccording to the Present Embodiment

FIG. 5 is a function block diagram showing configurations of thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 as examples of thewireless communication device according to the present embodiment. Thepersonal computer 10 includes the non-contact communication section 116,the wireless communication section 120, the simple setting processingsection 124, the timeout control section 132, the application 140, thestorage section 150 and a power input section 134, and the portabledevice 20 includes the non-contact communication section 216, thewireless communication section 220, the simple setting processingsection 224, the timeout control section 232, the application 240, thestorage section 250 and a power input section 254. Many parts of theconfigurations of the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20are duplicates of matters explained with reference to FIG. 2, and thus,parts that differ from the matters explained with reference to FIG. 2will be mainly explained.

The simple setting processing section 224 of the portable device 20 hasa function of a control section that establishes a wireless connectionbetween the wireless communication section 220 and the personal computer10 based on setting data obtained from the personal computer 10 via thenon-contact communication section 216, and a function of a dataprocessing section that stores the setting data obtained from thepersonal computer 10 via the non-contact communication section 216 inthe storage section 250.

That is, the simple setting processing section 224 stores the settingdata obtained from the personal computer 10 via the non-contactcommunication section 216 in the storage section 250 before the wirelessconnection between the wireless communication section 220 and thepersonal computer 10 is released by the timeout control section 232, forexample. Then, when the need arises for the wireless reconnectionbetween the wireless communication section 220 and the personal computer10, the wireless reconnection between the wireless communication section220 and the personal computer 10 is established based on the settingdata stored in the storage section 250. Note that the need for thewireless reconnection arises when, for example, there is a request fromthe application 240.

The storage section 250 functions as a storage medium that holds thesetting data stored by the simple setting processing section 224. Thestorage section 250 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory such asan electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), anerasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) or the like, a magneticdisk such as a hard disk, a circular magnetic disk or the like, anoptical disk such as a compact disk recordable (CD-R), a compact diskrewritable (CD-RW), a digital versatile disc recordable (DVD-R), adigital versatile disc rewritable (DVD-RW), a dual-layer digitalversatile disc recordable (DVD+R), a dual-layer digital versatile discrewritable (DVD+RW), a digital versatile disc random access memory(DVD-RAM), a Blu-ray™ disc recordable (BD-R), a Blu-ray™ disc rewritable(BD-RE) or the like, a magneto optical (MO) disk, or the like.

The setting data is, as described above, data necessary for the wirelessconnection between the personal computer 10 and the portable device 20.Hereunder, a concrete example of such setting data will be explainedwith reference to FIG. 6.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a concrete example of thesetting data. As shown in FIG. 6, the setting data includes informationnecessary for the wireless connection, such as a connection technologyfor wireless communication, a connection type, a Service Set Identifier(SSID), an authentication type, an encryption key, and the like.

Further, in FIG. 6, setting data is shown where the connectiontechnology is “Wi-Fi” (Wireless Fidelity), the connection type is“Infrastructure mode”, the SSID is “SSID1”, the authentication type is“WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), and the encryption key is “*********.”

Note that, in FIG. 6, a case is shown where the connection technology is“Wi-Fi”. However, the connection technology may be “Bluetooth(registered trademark)”, and in case the connection technology is“Bluetooth (registered trademark)”, information of a Bluetooth(registered trademark) address may be included, instead of the SSID, inthe setting data. Further, when the connection type is “ad hoc mode”, anetwork address or the like may be included in the setting data.

Here, returning to the explanation of the configuration of the portabledevice 20 with reference to FIG. 5, the power input section 254 has arole of receiving input of power from outside and supplying the power toeach configuration of the portable device 20. When power is input to theportable device 20 from outside via the power input section 254, it ispossible for the timeout control section 232 to not release the wirelessconnection between the portable device 20 and the personal computer 10.With such a configuration, the timeout control section 232 releases thewireless connection from the viewpoint of reducing the power consumedduring the wireless connection between the portable device 20 and thepersonal computer 10 and to effectively use the battery (not shown).Accordingly, while power is being input from outside via the power inputsection 254, there is little need to give thought to effectiveutilization of battery, and thus, the timeout control section 232 doesnot release the wireless connection and the process for the wirelessreconnection can be eliminated.

Heretofore, the configuration of the portable device 20 according to thepresent embodiment has been explained. Each configuration of the storagesection 150 and the power input section 134 of the personal computer 10can be made to be substantially the same with each configuration of thestorage section 250 and the power input section 254 of the portabledevice 20, and thus, the explanation is omitted.

(2-4) Wireless Communication Method to be Executed by the WirelessCommunication Device According to the Present Embodiment

Next, a flow of a wireless communication method to be executed by theportable device 20 as an example of the wireless communication deviceaccording to the present embodiment will be explained with reference toFIGS. 7 and 8.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow of a wirelesscommunication method to be executed by the portable device 20 accordingto the present embodiment. First, as shown in FIG. 7A, the non-contactcommunication section 216 of the portable device 20 obtains setting datafrom the non-contact communication section 116 of the personal computer10, a wireless connection is established between the wirelesscommunication section 220 of the portable device 20 and the wirelesscommunication section 120 of the personal computer 10 based on thesetting data, and the setting data is stored in the storage section 250.As such, in the state shown in FIG. 7A, since the wireless connection isestablished between the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10, arbitrary data can be transmitted and receivedbetween the application 240 of the portable device 20 and theapplication 140 of the personal computer 10.

When, for example, actual communication is not performed for apredetermined time period in a state where the wireless connection isestablished between the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10, the wireless connection between the wirelesscommunication section 220 of the portable device 20 and the wirelesscommunication section 120 of the personal computer 10 is released asshown in FIG. 7B. However, the setting data is held in the storagesection 250.

Here, it is assumed that a wireless communication via the wirelesscommunication section 220 becomes necessary in a state where thewireless connection between the wireless communication section 220 ofthe portable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 is released and the setting data is stored in thestorage section 250. In this case, for example, the wirelesscommunication section 220 receives transmission data from theapplication 240, and performs a wireless connection request to thesimple setting processing section 224. Then, the simple settingprocessing section 224 reads out the setting data from the storagesection 250, and establishes a wireless connection between the wirelesscommunication section 220 of the portable device 20 and the wirelesscommunication section 120 of the personal computer 10 based on thesetting data that is read out.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing a flow of a wireless communication methodto be executed by the portable device 20 according to the presentembodiment. First, the portable device 20 obtains setting data by thenon-contact communication with the personal computer 10 (S404). Next,the simple setting processing section 224 establishes a wirelessconnection between the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer based on the setting data (S408). Further, the simplesetting processing section 224 stores the setting data in the storagesection 250 (S412).

Then, the timeout control section 232 judges whether an actual datacommunication is not performed between the wireless communicationsection 220 of the portable device 20 and the wireless communicationsection 120 of the personal computer 10 for a predetermined time period(S416). When an actual data communication is not performed between thewireless communication section 220 of the portable device 20 and thewireless communication section 120 of the personal computer 10 for apredetermined time period, the timeout control section 232 releases thewireless connection between the wireless communication section 220 ofthe portable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 (S420).

Next, when the need arises for a wireless reconnection due to, forexample, a data transmission request from the application 240 (S424),the simple setting processing section 224 establishes a wirelessconnection between the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 based on the setting data stored in the storagesection 250 (S428).

As described above, with the portable device 20 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention, the simple setting processingsection 224 stores in the storage section 250 setting data necessary fora wireless connection between the portable device 20 and the personalcomputer 10, and when the need arises for a reconnection after thewireless connection between the portable device 20 and the personalcomputer 10 is released, reconnects the wireless connection between theportable device 20 and the personal computer 10 by using the settingdata stored in the storage section 250. Accordingly, according to theportable device 20, the portable device 20 and the personal computer 10can be automatically reconnected without the user of the portable device20 being forced of operations such as an input operation of the settingdata and the into-proximity operation of the portable device 20 to thepersonal computer 10.

(3) EXPLANATION OF A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION DEVICE ACCORDING TO A SECONDEMBODIMENT OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Next, the purpose, a particular configuration and the like of theportable device 20 as an example of the wireless communication deviceaccording to the second embodiment will be explained in detail.

(3-1) Purpose of the Present Embodiment

As described above, with the portable device 20 according to the firstembodiment, it is possible to reconnect a wireless connection with easebased on setting data stored in the storage section 250 without forcingthe user of the portable device 20 any special operation. On the otherhand, with the portable device 20 according to the first embodiment, theperiod for storing the setting data in the storage section 250 is notparticularly specified.

As a result, the portable device 20 according to the first embodimentcan automatically establish a wireless reconnection between the portabledevice 20 and the personal computer 10 regardless of whether thepersonal computer 10, which is a counterpart communication device of theportable device 20, is a possession of the user of the portable device20 or not.

However, if the possessor of the portable device 20 and the possessor ofthe personal computer 10 are different, there is a problem that thepossessor of the portable device 20 can execute the wirelessreconnection between the portable device 20 and the personal computer 10without an approval of the possessor of the personal computer 10. Thatis, there are cases for the portable device 20 according to the firstembodiment where the protection of security of each wirelesscommunication device and privacy of the user of each wirelesscommunication device are insufficient.

Accordingly, the portable device 20 according to a second embodiment hascome to be created by focusing on the circumstance as described above.According to the portable device 20 according to the second embodimentof the present invention, the protection of security of the counterpartcommunication device of the portable device 20 and privacy of thecounterpart communication device can be enhanced. Hereunder, theportable device 20 according to the present embodiment as such will beexplained in detail.

(3-2) Functional Configuration of the Wireless Communication DeviceAccording to the Present Embodiment

FIG. 9 is a function block diagram showing configurations of thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 according to the presentembodiment. The personal computer 10 includes the non-contactcommunication section 116, the wireless communication section 120, thesimple setting processing section 124, the timeout control section 132,the application 140 and a storage section 160, and the portable device20 includes the non-contact communication section 216, the wirelesscommunication section 220, the simple setting processing section 224,the timeout control section 232, the application 240 and a storagesection 260. Many parts of the configurations of the personal computer10 and the portable device 20 are duplicates of matters explained withreference to FIG. 2, and thus, parts that differ from the mattersexplained with reference to FIG. 2 will be mainly explained.

Each of the wireless communication devices, such as the personalcomputer 10, the portable device 20, and the like according to thepresent embodiment has a group ID as an example of group informationindicating the group to which the self device belongs. As for such groupID, the same group ID is set for the wireless communication devices ofthe same possessor.

The simple setting processing section 224 obtains the group ID of thepersonal computer 10, which is the counterpart communication device,from the personal computer 10 via the non-contact communication section216 or the wireless communication section 220, and stores the same inthe storage section 260. Such group ID is stored in the storage section260 in association with the setting data as shown in FIG. 10, forexample.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of data to bestored in the storage section 260. As shown in FIG. 10, the simplesetting processing section 224 stores in the storage section 260, inassociation with each other a counterpart communication device IDuniquely assigned to the counterpart communication device, setting datafor the counterpart communication device, the group ID of thecounterpart communication device, and the storing time of the settingdata, for example.

Further, the simple setting processing section 224 makes the storageperiod for the setting data in the storage section 260 variable as shownin FIG. 11, for example, depending on whether the group ID of thecounterpart communication device and the group ID of the portable device20 correspond to each other or not.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the storageperiod for the setting data in the storage section 260. As shown in FIG.11, the simple setting processing section 224 may make the storageperiod for the setting data for a counterpart communication device whosegroup ID is the same as the portable device 20 one month, and thestorage period for the setting data for a counterpart communicationdevice whose group ID is different from the portable device 20 one hour,for example. That is, the simple setting processing section 224 maydelete from the storage section 260 the setting data for the counterpartcommunication device whose group ID is the same as the portable device20 when one month has elapsed from the storing time and the setting datafor the counterpart communication device whose group ID is differentfrom the portable device 20 when one hour has elapsed from the storingtime.

Here, there is a case where the same possessor possesses the deviceshaving the same group ID. Further, the storage period for the settingdata in the storage section 260 corresponds to the period during whichthe wireless reconnection can be established between the portable device20 and the counterpart communication device by using the setting data.Accordingly, as described above, the period during which the wirelessreconnection can be established with the counterpart communicationdevice whose group ID is the same as the portable device 20 by using thesetting data can be made longer than the period during which thewireless reconnection can be established with the counterpartcommunication device whose group ID is different from the portabledevice 20 by using the setting data. As a result, the wirelessreconnection with the counterpart communication device whose group ID isdifferent from the portable device 20 based on the setting data isrestricted, and thus, the protection of security of the counterpartcommunication device, privacy of the user of the counterpartcommunication device, and the like can be enhanced. Note that the simplesetting processing section 224 may also ban the wireless connection witha counterpart communication device with a different group ID.

Further, in the above, a case has been explained where the storing timeof setting data is stored in the storage section 260 in association withthe setting data and control is performed as to whether the setting datais to be held or not based on the time elapsed since the storing time.However, it is also possible to store the release time of the release ofthe wireless connection in the storage section 260 in association withthe setting data and to perform control as to whether the setting datais to be held or not based on the time elapsed since the release time.Further, the storage section 160 of the personal computer 10 can beconfigured to be substantially the same as the storage section 260 ofthe portable device 20, and thus, a detailed explanation is omitted.

(3-3) Wireless Communication Method to be Executed by the WirelessCommunication Device According to the Present Embodiment

Next, a wireless communication method to be executed by the portabledevice 20 as an example of the wireless communication device accordingto the present embodiment will be explained with reference to FIG. 12.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart showing a flow of the wireless communicationmethod to be executed by the portable device 20 according to the presentembodiment. First, the portable device 20 obtains setting data by thenon-contact communication with the personal computer 10 (S504). Next,the simple setting processing section 224 establishes a wirelessconnection between the wireless communication section 220 of theportable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 based on the setting data (S508). Further, thesimple setting processing section 224 stores the setting data in thestorage section 260 (S512).

Then, the timeout control section 232 judges whether an actual datacommunication is not performed between the wireless communicationsection 220 of the portable device 20 and the wireless communicationsection 120 of the personal computer 10 for a predetermined time period(S516). When an actual data communication is not performed between thewireless communication section 220 of the portable device 20 and thewireless communication section 120 of the personal computer 10 for apredetermined time period, the timeout control section 232 releases thewireless connection between the wireless communication section 220 ofthe portable device 20 and the wireless communication section 120 of thepersonal computer 10 (S520).

Next, the simple setting processing section 224 judges whether thestorage period for the setting data in the storage section 260 haselapsed or not (S524). When it is judged that the storage period for thesetting data in the storage section 260 has not elapsed and, forexample, there is an instruction for data communication by wirelesscommunication from the application 240 (S528), the simple settingprocessing section 224 establishes a wireless connection between thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 based on the settingdata stored in the storage section 260 (S532).

Further, when it is judged that the storage period for the setting datain the storage section 260 has not elapsed and, for example, there is noinstruction for data communication by wireless communication from theapplication 240 (S528), it returns to the process of S524. Further, whenit is judged in S524 that the storage period for the setting data in thestorage section 260 has elapsed, the simple setting processing section224 deletes the corresponding setting data stored in the storage section260 (S536).

(4) CONCLUSION

As described above, since the portable device 20 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention obtains setting data by non-contactcommunication, the portable device 20 and the personal computer 10 canbe automatically reconnected without the user of the portable device 20being forced of operations such as the input operation of setting dataand the into-proximity operation of the portable device 20 to thepersonal computer 10.

Further, the portable device 20 according to the second embodiment ofthe present invention makes the storage period for the setting data inthe storage section 260 variable depending on the relation between thegroup ID of the counterpart communication device and the group ID of theself device, and thus, the protection of security of the counterpartcommunication device, privacy of the user of the counterpartcommunication device, and the like can be enhanced.

Note that, although the preferred embodiments of the present inventionhave been explained with reference to the appended drawings, it isneedles to say that the present invention is not limited to suchexamples. It is obvious that various modifications and alterations maybe achieved by those skilled in the art within the scope of the claims,and it is understood that they are naturally within the scope of theclaims.

For example, in the above described embodiments, a case is explainedwhere the wireless connection between the personal computer 10 and theportable device 20 is established in a state where the personal computer10 is connected to the base station 12. However, the present inventionis not limited to such an example. For example, the wireless connectionwith the portable device 20 may be established based on setting datathat is received by the personal computer 10 from the portable device 20by bringing the portable device 20 into proximity of the personalcomputer 10 while the portable device 20 and the base station areconnected and having the setting data transmitted from the portabledevice 20 to the personal computer 10 by a non-contact communication.

Each of the steps to be performed by the portable device 20 in thisspecification need not necessarily be performed chronologically in theorder shown in the flow charts or the sequence diagram, and processingto be executed in parallel or individually (for example, parallelprocessing or object processing) may also be included.

Further, a computer program can also be created that makes hardware suchas the CPU 201, the ROM 202, the RAM 203 and the like built into thepersonal computer 10 and the portable device 20 function as each of theconfigurations of the above-described personal computer 10 and theportable device 20. Further, a storage medium in which the computerprogram is stored is also provided.

1. A wireless communication device, comprising: a first communicationunit that performs a non-contact communication with an external deviceand that receives setting data from the external device; a secondcommunication unit that performs a wireless communication with theexternal device; a control unit that establishes the wirelesscommunication between the second communication unit and the externaldevice by using the setting data received by the first communicationunit; a data processing unit that stores the setting data in a storageunit before the wireless communication is released; a power input unitto which power is input from outside; and a communication releasing unitthat releases the wireless communication between the secondcommunication unit and the external device, wherein the control unituses the setting data stored in the storage unit at a time ofre-performing a wireless communication between the second communicationunit and the external device, and the communication releasing unitreleases the wireless communication when the power is not being suppliedvia the power input unit.
 2. The wireless communication device accordingto claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device and the externaldevice have group information enabling an identification of a group towhich each belongs.
 3. The wireless communication device according toclaim 2, wherein the data processing unit makes a storage period for thesetting data in the storage unit variable depending on whether the groupinformation of the wireless communication device and the groupinformation of the external device correspond to each other or not. 4.The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the dataprocessing unit makes the storage period for the setting data in thestorage unit longer for a case where the group information of thewireless communication device and the group information of the externaldevice correspond to each other than for a case where the groupinformation of the wireless communication device and the groupinformation of the external device differ from each other.
 5. Thewireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein the settingdata includes at least one of a connection technology for the wirelesscommunication, a connection type, a Service Set Identifier (SSID), anauthentication type and an encryption key.
 6. The wireless communicationdevice according to claim 5, wherein the connection technology is Wi-Fior Bluetooth.